Hearts are not had as a gift
by mydoctortennant
Summary: But hearts are earned. AU after 4x09. No spoielrs for after AT ALL. A/G, slight M/M
1. Chapter 1

**So I wrote this immediately after picking myself up from breaking point after 4x09 (I did this by decorating one roomie's door like a TARDIS and putting a line of salt outside the others, she'd spent ALL week watching SPN for the first time, it was rather amusing if I do say so myself...), so it's slightly rendered AU from 4x10 but still. Beta' by the lovely sgmajorshipper on LJ. It's a three part story, with two one-shot sequels which will be followed on by my own longer story after that! WOOHOO! **

**Hope y'all like it!**

**PART ONE**

Betrayal hung heavily in the air of Camelot, woven alongside questioning and misunderstanding, unseen sorcery. The town was empty save for Merlin sitting outside of the tavern looking down the main gangway to his friend's house. He did no't know how to react anymore. This wasn't Gwen;, she loved Arthur, she would never do this to him and now she was leaving and there was nothing he could do to stop it. And Arthur would never listen to him. No word against Agravaine was taken in by him, the man wasn't right, not in this case.

Merlin had already heard the rumours;, those who were so supporting of Gwen, the serving girl who had won their King's heart soon turned into the adulterous woman, thrust from her home, and from grace. From being the most loved woman in Camelot to the Scarlet Woman. Merlin refused to let it happen. Maybe she had to leave for Arthur to realise how much he needed her, to allow him to get over his hurt and move forwards, but Merlin knew that he needed her,; little though he may admit it to himself, he still wanted her despite himself.

When Gwen emerged from her small home Merlin fought the urge to run to her, tell her not to go, that he would sort it out, but part of him hurt for his other friend. The betrayal was running deep in the veins of the city and through Merlin's own. He hurt, but there was always an explanation and if Morgana was at the route of Lancelot's return, hurting their relationship couldn't have been far behind. She would wanted Gwen away from him;, off of 'her' throne.

He should have known.

He should have figured it out.

It was all Morgana.

He leapt from his perch and ran after her, calling out her name. She kept walking, her shoulders shaking as she hauled the cart towards the city's edge. "Gwen, please." He caught her easily, she was stillonly small; she was struggling with the cart, unable to go much faster than a slow walk. When he rounded in front of her she stopped. Tear tracks were evident on her cheeks. He embraced her, "I'm sorry. I'll do whatever I can. I'll change his mind."

"You can't, Merlin," she choked out against his tunic.

"This isn't you Gwen, like it wasn't Lancelot. He would never, _iyou_/i would never."

"I ruined everything. It was all perfect, and I ruined it." Merlin shook his head. "I have to go."

"I'll make it right, I promise you," he told her, holding onto her arms and looking deep into her eyes. "I'll find you when I do."

"Don't, Merlin. There's nothing you can do."

"I'll make it right," he repeated, "I promise you. Arthur will see sense." Gwen shook her head at him, fighting a fresh batch of tears that threatened to fall, "At least let me help you."

"You should be helping Arthur."

"He needs to be alone." She nodded in understanding. Merlin made to the other side of the cart and helped her to push. They walked in silence,; neither had any more words, she couldn't explain herself and he couldn't explain what he knew without giving away far too much about himself than he was comfortable with.

When they reached the city gates, Merlin didn't want to stop, he wanted to pull the whole thing back around and walk her back home. To the place where only three days ago she' had been the happiest she had ever been. The future queen. She hadn't known Merlin had heard everything. Arthur's mild confusion when she didn't say anything, embracing him without a word. Her laughter as she realised she had never vocalised her answer. He would have sworn he'd have heard the smiles on their faces before he heard the sound of their kiss and he's retreated then. He didn't need to know what happened next.

He hugged her one more time, wrapping his arms tightly about her, "One day, I'll find you, one day soon."

"Merlin."

"Gwen, he loves you. He's hurting right now, but he will forgive you, he already has, but he's hurting. Just give him time."

She blinked back tears and chewed on her lips. She nodded. "Thank you, Merlin, for everything. I owe you my life, so does Arthur. I'll see you again, one day. You'll visit me?"

"Of course. Every chance I get." Fresh tears fell then.

"Bye."

X

As he walked back through the town, past her house, he stopped himself from going in. Any other day and he'd have popped his head in to say hello if she was home. On an evening before going to the tavern with Gwaine or early morning when he had been on rounds of the market with Gaius. He would miss that. He would miss her. And it was Morgana's fault., Hher and Agravaine needed to be stopped. If only Arthur would believe him.

He briefly paused by the front door of the tavern and contemplated going in and becoming the person Arthur often saw him as; Gwaine's biggest tavern rival.

He thought better of it. He needed to face Arthur, tell him what he knew,; at least try and make him see sense about Gwen.

X

Days passedt. Every time Merlin even tried to broaoch the subject of the departed figure in their lives, Arthur would shut him out, shout at him to leave or give him further orders. He hadn't quite resorted to throwing things at him but Merlin wouldn't have been surprised. It was like losing Morgana all over again. Though Merlin knew they'd lost her to the other side of the fight long before she was gone, it still hurt. Then, like now, he'd played out every other scenario in his head as to how he could have done things differently. If he'd realised sooner what Lancelot was going to do, if he'd stopped him, stopped Agravaine, then Arthur and Gwen would have finally been married. After so many years, and so much heartache, they would finally have been together in permanent union, against all odds and rules.

"Find Elyan, will you?" Arthur asked Merlin, "He didn't report to training this morning." Merlin didn't even quip about understanding why he might pass. His sister was gone,gone; it was more than understandable that he might not fancy swinging a sword around for a couple of hours.

"Of course." Arthur had started to act as if nothing had happened. Each of the knights had taken a turn to talk to him about Gwen but each had been knocked back or ignored more obviously than the last. Leon had gotten the furthest with him before being turned away. If possible, Gwaine had spent more time in the tavern, drowning his sorrows he'd said, but never in front of Arthur.

X

Finding the missing knight had been harder than Merlin had thought it would have been. He checked Gwen's house, the obvious place he thought, and the old Smithy, but found him in neither. It He widened his search to the tavern, where Gwaine was already starting for the day,; he'd asked him but he hadn't seen the other either.

Once he reached the castle walls once again he headed back to Gaius' chambers, he should really learn locating spells; it would help for all those socks Arthur kept losing, too. He knew the physician was out on his rounds and wouldn't be there, so to be greeted with a presence was a shock.

"Elyan?"

The knight didn't look up at him, just down at his hands. Merlin followed his gaze to find a bracelet, one he hadn't seen before. "I found it in Gwen's cell." He admitted, "She was wearing the last few days. Since Lancelot returned."

"A real engagement present from Arthur?" So the King had thought past two days of sweating men bashing each other about on horseback. It was a memory that Merlin wanted to cling onto now, one of the last happy moments he had before everything had started to fall apart.

Elyan shook his head; "She told me Lancelot gave it to her, I should have realised something was wrong then." He fell silent before throwing the bracelet across the room, "Why would she do that? To Arthur, of all people?"

Merlin's gaze was still on the bracelet, "Maybe she didn't."

"What?"

"Something was wrong with Lancelot. He wasn't acting like himself. He looked at me like he barely knew me at all. Like he'd forgotten everything about me, that we were friends once. People don't just return from the dead."

"What are you suggesting? Magic?"

"Maybe he wasn't the only one under a spell." He moved across the room to pick up the bracelet,; it was beautiful but that did not stop it from being dangerous. "Maybe this had something to do with it."

"I'll help you." For a moment Merlin was hesitant, Arthur wanted to see him, but in a mood like this neither of them would help the other and the sorcerer feared that Elyan might lash out, though usually of sombre temperament, under the circumstances he wouldn't blame him.

"Thanks."

Merlin pulled several books down from the shelves, ones he had experience with and h knowing included what might help them.

"We'll get her back, Elyan, I promise."

X

It took them hours of searching before Elyan called out for Merlin, brandishing a page of book he'd been reading. They had found no sign of the bracelet, but the old smithy had found and enchantment for jewellery that coincided with the situation; RreawakeningReawakening one's old emotions.

"That's it. This is brilliant!" Merlin said, taking the book from Elyan and beaming.

"What about the bracelet? Without some conclusive evidence to back us up we' will never convince Arthur of it." Elyan said, which dampened Merlin's mood. Of course the knight was right.

"I'll think of something," he reassured him and mentally planned his route out to his usual clearing.

"There's just one thing I don't understand; who would do this?"

"Morgana would." He had no solid evidence, and sure there were probably others out to bring Arthur's throne out from under him, but only one person knew how to play the Lancelot's card and only one would sink so low as to go against her friends like that.

X

Merlin stood in the middle of the clearing and called for the Great Dragon. The creature came elegantly and quickly, landing as he usually did before him.

He was weary.

"What is it today, young warlock?" he asked him, seeming to sigh with his words.

"Morgana has enchanted Gwen. She made her fall back on her past emotions and Agravaine set Arthur up to see it. She brought Lancelot back from the dead. He was a shade. We've found the spell she used but we have no way of convincing Arthur."

"The young king is hurting, no?. But perhaps he is looking for an excuse to bring her back to him more than you think."

"It's not an excuse."

"That it may not be, yet, to him, it will. He is looking for somewhere to place the blame, other than her. Present him with the evidence and he' shall take it." The Dragon told him, gracefully bowing his head.

"But I have no evidence towards the bracelet."

"Then, young warlock, do what you do best, and lie." The Dragon laughed and took to the skies. Merlin was left stood in the middle of the field, mouthing the Dragon's last words to him.

"I've got it." He ran back to the castle quicker than he had ever moved in his life.

X

Arthur, unlike Elyan, was easily found. He was sat in his usual chair looking towards his window, pensive. He'd heard every manner of chatter about him the last few days, ranging from scolding Guinevere to reprimanding him. Some spoke of how it was out of character for her to act that way, how she had clearly loved Arthur, others called her a whore. Even through his anger towards her, he did not feel the comment fair.

"Arthur?" Merlin pulled him from his thoughts. "I bring news."

"What news?" the King asked, down beaten and monotonous.

"Of Gwen."

"I don't want to hear it, Merlin." He looked away from him, back out of the window.

"Just hear me out. She was enchanted, so was Lancelot. Morgana, she used him to break you apart. Agravaine fed him information and things to aid their plan. He must hadhave told Morgana you were engaged to be married. How else would she know?"

"Why should I believe you?"

"Because I saw it with my own eyes,; moments before he led you to find them, he was talking to Lancelot."

"And I'm grateful he did, else I'd have married her and been made a bigger fool."

"I understand that you're hurting, Arthur. But think about it, you know her, better than you know anyone else. You love her, I know you do. And she loves you. This wasn't her. She would never hurt you like that. I know you feel betrayed, I know you feel like she broke your heart and you'll never love again, but think about it, Arthur. Be rational, please. You have to believe me."

"How can I? How can I trust that all this time my own uncle has been in league with my biggest enemy?"

"You once told me that I was the only person you could trust, so trust me now. Please." Arthur gestures for him to keep talking, "We found this in Gwen's cell. Nobody has been in there since, look, it matches completely." Merlin showed him the page of the book, next to the spell was now a picture of a bracelet identical to the one in Merlin's hand. "She would have been under its spell since she started to wear it."

"I've never seen that bracelet before."

"That's because Lancelot gave it to her. And Morgana to him." Merlin said, his tone pleading the King to believe him, yet the blonde looked concerned.

"You're telling me Guinevere was enchanted?" He asked him, finally looking as if he may be considering the words as truth. The Dragon must have been wrong, if he was looking for reason for Gwen to be innocent, he was sure showing his compassion in an odd way.

"She had to have been. She loves you, she would never have done what she did was she in her right mind. It was Morgana."

"How can you be sure?"

"I saw Lancelot, talking, talking to Agravaine. He spoke about her like he'd seen her, like she was the one in control. She wants your throne,throne; she'd do anything to get it. And if you married Gwen that would make it one more person in her way. And besides, if they really were acting behind your back then surely they would have done a better job than hiding in the council chambers? There are plenty of other rooms in the castle for them to hide. It was like they wanted you to find them, and your uncle led you right to them."

Arthur looked at him for a second, and Merlin thought he saw a shred of understanding, or knowledge towards the situation. Surely even he could see through his anger and hurt that it made sense.

"Merlin, this is ludicrous." Or not.

"I can't prove it was her, I know that. But you have to trust me, Arthur, I know what I saw. I know who I saw. It wasn't Lancelot, I know him, heand he treated me like a stranger rather than a friend. It was a Shade of him. He wasn't under his own control. Think about it. You know she's powerful. You know she wants the throne. What's to stop her from using those closest to you to bring you to your knees? She knows of your feelings for Gwen, she knows that she is probably your only weakness. Rip her out from underneath your feet and you get left legless. You need her and Morgana knows it. Trust me, Arthur. Let me show you."

Despite looking like he was ready to accept Merlin's words, Arthur shook his head. "I can't."

"Why?"

"Because what if you're lying to me too?" he shouted, standing from the chair he hadn't vacated for hours, "What if all of this is a lie? I thought Guinevere loved me and then she goes and does this. My father lied to me for so long. Morgana. Everybody I've ever had lieds to me. I thought, in Gwen, that I'd finally found somebody I could rely on. I loved her, with every fibre of my being and she threw it in my face."

"Listen to yourself, Arthur, listen to your heart, you know that wasn't her." Merlin countered, his voice raisingrising louder than appropriate when a servant was talking to his master, especially given that said master was the king of Camelot. "There is no one in this world who loved you more than she did. You gave up everything for each other. Both of you were so willing to give up your lives to be together. Why would she go back on that?" he asked him, imploring him to see sense. Arthur was usually rather receptive to words and reason unlike his father but this whole ordeal had sent him deep into a similar mind set of the late King before he had lost his mind, "She loved him once, but not anymore. And definitely not the man Morgana brought back from the dead. I know it wasn't him. I know I can't prove that to you, it would be so much easier if he was still alive. Morgana covered her tracks well this time." He stopped his tangent before he gave himself away for being more involved in certain things that he appeared to be. He pushed the book towards his king once again and pointed to the spell, " I know that you don't want to believe me. But I know if you could turn back time you would. You need her."

"No Merlin, I don't. I don't need anyone."

"Stop trying to fool yourself, it's not working. And it won't work on me, I know you still love her."

"Yes, Merlin, I do. Thank you for reminding me about the one person who I don't ever want to think about again. We were to be married. After so long of waiting, two days ago should have been the happiest day of my life, but it was the worst. I loved her, and yes I might have forgiven her, but I'll never forget. I'll never trust her again; I'll never be able to look at her again. Now get out."

"Arthur."

"Now!"

Merlin quickly left the room but left the book before him. He heard the item be thrown across the room and hit against the wooden door with a crash as he moved away. It was the first healthy sign of emotion that Arthur had shown in days. Now if he would move on his grief he could make the man see that all of this had been a rouse.

X

Merlin was pacing again. He was grateful that love wasn't something that plagued him on a daily basis. He missed Freya but he couldn't bring her back. He knew what it felt to lose somebody but his love for Freya didn't have the chance to ever run as deep as Arthur's love for Gwen. Every fibre of his being was drenched with her, everything about her.

"He has to see sense." Merlin declared, stopping to sit down opposite his guardian. The physician had been of little help over the last few days. When Merlin had suggested the idea of sorcery and enchantment to him the first time he had suggested that maybe this time it was simply temptation that had gotten the better of both of them. It had escalated into an argument about Gwen's honour and the shade that Lancelot was, if he wasn't there to kill Arthur then he was there to take away the one thing from Arthur that drove him to be a better man. Merlin needed Gaius to understand that without Gwen, Albion would never be born.

"He's still hurting. What she did-"

"It wasn't her." He interrupted. He was fed up of people doubting him, of doubting her. He wasn't willing to admit anything other than what he knew was fact.

"What he saw her do, was unforgiveable." Gaius said to him. Merlin wanted to shout at him. Gaius knew Gwen too; he knew that she was pure of heart, that she wasn't the sort of person who would ever do what she did. For the firstsecond time in their lives, magic was to blame and an innocent girl was falling in its place; Merlin had allowed it to get the better of them before, he wasn't about to let it happen again..

"I know it was, but he has forgiven her. He understands that, he knows that, and I think that's what he doesn't like, that he's already forgiven her. He knows her, he knows that really it wasn't her, she wasn't in control of her actions."

"Know that he might, Merlin, but this is a delicate matter. He won't want to see her."

"But he does, I can see it in his face. He misses her more than he'll ever admit." Though the wound is fresh, in the past few months the way Arthur had dealt with emotional situations was to turn to Gwen and now he couldn't. She wasn't there to turn to. Any other number of situations and he would have forgiven her and they would have moved past it, fractured for a time, yes, but on and up.

"Then you have to find proof, Merlin."

"I had proof." He sighed defeated. Everything he had tried to far had failed.

"You need a confession." Gaius provided butoncebut once again Merlin's mind was driven to his discarded idea of mind control.

"Because Morgana is just going to come along and tell Arthur she framed his betrothed, again."

"Morgana, or…" Gaius hinted.

In a slow moment of recognition Merlin looked up at him, "Agravaine." There was every temptation within him to mind control Agravaine into telling Arthur everything but then Arthur would accuse somebody else of sorcery and nothing would go to plan and his uncle would walk away unharmed and still innocent in the eyes of the king.

"Agravaine." Gaius confirmed.

Then it hit him. Merlin knew what he had to do to get his friend back and set Albion back on course she greatness.

He took off, like he did whenever he'd had a sudden wave of an idea. He didn't say anything more to the physician, but he knew what he had to do now, and he wouldn't stop until he did.

X

When Merlin turned to Leon, he hadn't expected to be greeted with open arms. Gwaine had agreed forthright, as had Elyan. Percival hadn't taken much convincing it was only Leon that he felt would be some problem. Yet when he mentioned his feelings to the knight he agreed, "For some time I have suspected something might be wrong. When I thought there was a traitor within our midst, I suspected it may be him, especially when he pointed Arthur towards Gaius which was preposterous. Nothing with him adds up, so yes, I'll help you. For Gwen. For Arthur."

"For the future of Albionvalon?" Merlin supplied with a small smile on his face. It would certainly make his fight more likely to be victorious if Leon was on his side. Loyal to Arthur though he was, Leon had grown up with Gwen and had known her longer than any of them, Elyan excluded.

"So what do we do?" he asked, the other knights gathered with them in the small room they had met in.

"We need Arthur to hear him admit that he was involved, somehow. HFrom his own admission that he's a traitor."

"And how do we do that?" Elyan piped up.

"I don't know."

"It wouldn't be as simple as just asking, he'd never admit to it." Leon stated.

Merlin nodded, Leon was right, a plan though it was, it was going to be difficult to execute without thorough planning. There was only one way that Arthur would ever believe the whole story, "We need to follow him to Morgana, take Arthur with us. Some sort of animal hunt. It's the only way Arthur would come."

"Animal hunt; saving a damsel in distress," Gwaine offered.

"Maybe not the latter. Any sort of quest and he's ours for the leading."

"Just as long as he thinks he's the one in charge, eh?"

"That will be the challenge." Merlin concluded. If they wanted to lead Arthur after Agravanie it would be no use if they did not actually follow his trail. "Maybe we're following bandits, or we say we have a hot trail for Morgana, we can finally bring i_her/i _to her knees_." _They each agreed to the idea.

They finalised parts of their plans, following Agravaine would be hard,; they would need to act fast once he was gone. Gwaine suggested following him one night to wherever Morgana was so they could just take Arthur straight there once they knew Agravaine was there. It seemed like the best idea; they would take it in turns, pairs, to keep an eye on him.

They disbanded soon after, with Leon and Percival taking the first shift watching him.

"Do you know where she is?" Elyan asked him, loitering behind once the other knights had left.

"She's with Mary and John. She's going to move on to Ealdor, to stay with my mother."

"So she's safe?" Merlin nodded, "She'd be safer here. She belongs here. This is her home. Our home. She's my sister, I owe her everything."

"We'll get her back. We'll make it right."

"There's one thing I don't understand," Elyan said, "Why now? Morgana's known about their relationship longer than I have, if she wanted to put a stop to it, why do it now?"

"She's tried before. A couple of times." Merlin admitted, though did not go into details, they still all believe it was the old man who had framed her and Arthur before, not Morgana.

"Why would anyone want to hurt Gwen?"

"Because she is one step between Morgana and the throne of Camelot."

Merlin was glad to have the knights on his side, on Gwen's side. They were loyal to Arthur, but they could see as clearly as he could that something was wrong. Arthur was clouded by the supposed betrayal, he was broken. That was the only way for Merlin to describe it. Other than attacking Lancelot, Merlin hadn't witnessed Arthur lash out at anything else. He hadn't bloodied his knuckles so it was unlike that he'd punched any walls and there was no evidence that he'd cried. He just sat there, stoic. He didn't seem like Arthur, the rough, tough, fighting-the-world-until-it-returns-to-how-it-should-be guy was gone. He just carried on, the life behind his eyes dulled.

He knew there was only one person who could bring it back, and if Merlin could prove to the King that she hadn't betrayed him knowingly then maybe it would come back, in time. The hurt, no matter how manufactured by false means, would take time to heal.

X

It wasn't long until they had their chance to follow Agravaine to Morgana, that night he left the castle by dark and rode to a lesser trodden sector of the forest. So close yet so far that they would never have found her easily. With the route memorised, the knights quickly returned to Camelot.

X

Morgana smiled. The news Agravaine had brought her over the last few days was pleasing. Guinevere was gone. Arthur never likely to forgive her for what she'd done. His defences were down, "This is good news. Our poor King won't know what hit him."

"I fear Merlin might be onto us."

"He makes it his business to know what is going on with everything. Chances are he'll be no harm. And if he is, we'll dispose of him. Him and all the knights. If we cannot get Arthur, we take his support. And once the rest of them are gone, Camelot will be mine."

X

The market was brimming with people from all over trying to sell their wares. Among them was a fishmonger, a swords smith, a fabric merchant and a lost girl. A woman by all means these day. She wondered through the stalls, a look of familiarity on her face. She had always enjoyed the markets. She ran her fingers over the soft silks she could scarcely afford. Years ago now she would have been buying them for her mistress, to make her dresses that would dazzle even the furthest travelled princes.

Around her neck she had a cord, the top visible above the neckline of her travelling wear, but the pendant hanging beneath her clothes; a simple ring that she would cherish forever. It would always remind her of her greatest love that she had lost, never to see again.

She had done the worst possible thing to him.

She jumped as an older woman grabbed her arm, "Your fortune, dear?" she wore ana strange array of clothes, thin materials layered a top each other. She had many beads dangled about her neck and spindly fingers that curled their way around Gwen's thin arm.

"No, thank you," she politely declined but the woman wouldn't let go of her. The last time Gewn had seen a woman such as this, it had been Morgause in disguise, come to give word to Morgana. She had seen the woman's true self in a mirror. Gwen looked around and sure enough being close to the material cart there was one. In it, she could see both her reflection and that of the woman.

She looked identical.

"You want to hear what I have to say, Guinevere of Camelot."

"I haven't any money to give you."

"I don't want your money, just a moment of your time." What harm could it do, the woman knew her name, which was something that disturbed her slightly, but if they were not going further than the crowd she was safe enough.

"This was not your destiny, Guinevere." The woman told her frankly, "and it will not be. You are to be Queen of Camelot."

Gwen laughed for fear of crying, "I fear you are a few days too late." For the last days all she had given thought to was the reasons why she had acted as she had. As pathetic as it was she could not even lay a finger on why she'd done what she'd done. She could barely remember even making the arrangements to meet with Lancelot. During the tourney she could remember feeling the whole thing wrong but couldn't stop herself from being within his company. She was drawn to him in a way she had been yeas previously but hadn't paid heed to in such a time. She had put it down to her relief that he was not dead. The guilt she had felt when they had come back from the quest to stop the veil ripping apart the world with news that Lancelot had given himself so Arthur would not had reduced her to tears for so long that she feared she would never stop crying. Arthur had understood then why she was upset and left her to grieve. Later that night she had gone to him, explained to him in greater detail why she felt the way she did and he'd held her within the safety of his arms until she cried no more.

"So I have heard. But the young Pendragon, he will forgive you. For there is one thing in this world greater than any magic and it will prevail. But not without your help, Guinevere."

"He does not wish to marry me, he does not love me."

"Nonsense, girl, if there is any love that will last longer than time itself, it is yours. You may not see it now, but this betrayal, his harsh words, they may have been his own but your actions, they were not." For a moment Gwen frowned, she was suggesting that she had been enchanted, but how? "Dictated to you by a lady."

"They were not." She denied her.

"He is in danger, Guinevere," the lady old her, tired of her disagreements. "That who wished you ill, plans to kill him. Only you can stop her from doing so."

"I do not think so."

"Morgana Pendragon is a troubled being. She knows nothing of love or of true power. Evil rules her heart, with your help, Emrys will defeat her."

"Emrys?" Gwen questioned, she was certain it was a name she had heard before but quite why or where she couldn't recall.

"He is the most powerful sorcerer the Five Kingdoms has ever known. The last of the Dragonlords. You know him well, he means to save you." The older woman told her much to Gwen's confusion. She knew no sorcerers. She knew Morgana once but she was not going to bring herself down.

"I know no Emrys."

"I believe he goes by another name, but you must discover this for yourself, Guinevere. Trust in him and the world will be balanced once again. King Arthur and his Queen, Guinevere, daughter of a blacksmith and a maid. Only then can Albionvalon become what it is destined to be." She handed her a crystal, "It will help you find your way, dear."

The woman left quicker than she had come, leaving Gwen in the midst of a crowd of people bartering for the same sheet of cloth. Gwen looked after the woman but could not see her. She raised the crystal in front of her face to look into it. She could see, so vividly, Arthur's face, he was sitting blankly looking out of a window. She had done this to him. That was all the drive she needed to make it right. She needed to see him smile again.

The image in the crystal changed to Morgana and another, a man with black hair, Gwen couldn't see his face but she was smirking at him, clearly pleased. She walked past the man and towards the crystal's front, the man turned around. Gwen's eye widened. She had never suspected he would be in league with Morgana, despite finding it hard to ever trust him completely. If he was on Morgana's side then Arthur truly was in trouble, for she could bring him down from the inside.

For the first time since wthe events hadhat had happened, Gwen thought about the possibility that she may not be wholly responsible for her actions.

**EXTRA NOTE: If reviewing (which is ultra lovely of you) could all please refrain from saying spoilers, I've avoided them ALL year. I don't want my efforts to be shot down now. I'm usually such a spoilerwhre but this year I'm such a phobe and it's worked WONDERS!**


	2. Chapter 2

**PART TWO**

Guinevere packed her belongings back together. With the permission of Mary and John she left the majority of her things with them. She didn't want to be weighed down on her journey. She needed to be quick if she was to help at all.

The crystal she held in her hand was showing her the way. She held it up in front of her face one more time and it had started to tug in the direction back towards Camelot. Whether it was taking her to Arthur, Morgana or somewhere completely different, she was unsure;, all she knew was she had to follow it.

She took a sword with her, a spare tunic and some food supplies but little else. She needed to right her wrongs.

X

Busying himself with council proceedings did nothing to help Arthur's fowl moods. He gave no time to charity events or mindless tasks. He trained with his men; he saw to official proceedings and spent the rest of his time on his own. Merlin tried to keep within his company the majority of the time but he often sent him away.

It had been several days since the knights had located Morgana but Agravaine had not ridden out to her since. They were waiting with horses ready every night to follow him but if he wasn't with Arthur he was overseeing events that Arthur was paying no heed to. Every day, it seemed that Arthur was becoming more like his father, his heart cold and unopened.

"Have you heard from her?" he asked Merlin one day, to the sorcerer's surprise. Within prompting from others, Arthur hadn't spoken of Gwen since she'd left. Merlin nodded.

"Not for some time, but she wrote me last week to say she was staying with Mary and John. She will be moving onto Ealdor soon. I'm sure I'll hear from my mother any day now to say that she has arrived safely."

"Good," was all he had to say in return.

In truth, Merlin was starting to worry. Gwen should have been with his mother by now. She was merely stopping over with her old friends; at least, that wais what she had said in her letter.

A knock came at the King's door. Merlin's ear's pricked up, he was becoming used to recognising important information that he would need to relay to other's later. Arthur had a habit of forgetting the details at times.

"Enter."

"My lord," it was Leon, he spared a look to Merlin and gave him a brief nod. It was time. "We have reason to believe we have found Morgana's lair."

"Then we must ride out right away," Arthur concluded near immediately. It pleased Merlin. Throw hims self into work, into a plan that they had wanted to work in their favour.

Perhaps Arthur was starting to see sense, or maybe he wanted it out of Morgana himself. That or he just wanted to halt her plans. She had already brought so many unwelcomed experienceds into his life.

X

Having borrowed a horse from Mary and John, Gwen followed the crystal at a canter for most of the day. She stopped occasionally to allow the horse to drink but she kept going. After a while she realised that it wasn't taking her towards Camelot. She hoped that she was riding for Morgana.

It crossed her mind several times that the woman could have been leading her into a trap. But she was already gone from Camelot, what harm was she to anybody now? She had no position and never would.

By the time the crystal had stopped moving, she was ten metres from a door to a hovel, and it was dark. Gwen had taken cover behind a few trees and their branches and waited to see if anybody would come by. For hours she waited but late into the evening she heard hoof beats. Branches snapped beneath the feet of the horse, closely followed by the feet of a man who disembarked it. Gwen moved forwards to try and catch a glimpse of the man's face, she couldn't be sure, but she was fairly self-certain that it was Agravaine. Everything about him was familiar.

He didn't stay long, five minutes at a maximum. He emerged from the house and sure enough she had been right. It was him. She scowled. Why would he do such a thing?

He left quickly, the horse trotted up the bank towards Camelot.

Morgana looked around, Gwen quickly hid back down into the branches .She felt a hand on her shoulder. Menacing, too close to her neck to be friendly and too tight to be safe. "You made a grave mistake returning here, Guinevere." The man said, hauling her too her feet and dragging her down the embankment towards Morgana would was smiling wryly.

"Well, well, well, if it isn't the Queen of Camelot," she ran her finger across her old maid's cheek, she flinchesd away, "Oh, I'm sorry. For that's not your title, is it?"

"What do you want from me?"

"Come now, Gwen, why so hostile?"

"I lost everything I had because of you."

"Was it me though? Was it not your inner desires getting as they wished?" Gwen pulled forwards away from Agravaine and lunged towards Morgana but the older man was stronger than she'd anticipated and hauled her back away from her.

"Take her inside."

He did as he was told. Morgana looked around the forest, making sure not to see any there weren't any other figures hiding in the woods. When she was certain she was alone, she made her way back inside the hovel she refused to call home.

X

They made good speed, with Leon and Elyan leading the pack, having been the ones to find Morgana the first night. They hadn't time to check that there were no tracks leading away from the place. Even if Agravaine wasn't there, finding Morgana played a large part of their plan. She was still so adamant at bringing Arthur to his knees so doing likewise to her before she could initiate her next plot would be an added bonus.

They didn't stop until they were at the site. They dismounted and tethered their horses a good fifty metres from the decline. Merlin knew the area,area; he'd been here twice now though the first time he barely remembered. He hadn't thought to bring his disguise with him, should the occasion rise. It had all happened too fast for him to think about it.

He allowed the two knights to lead him to the clearing that served as Morgana's entrance.

There were voices. Two females voices, both of which Merlin and all of the knights recognised straight away. The servant tried to catch a glimpse of his master's expression but couldn't see him clearly enough. He saw the side of his jaw clench and could only imagine that his face was otherwise blank, not wanting to show a shred of emotion.

Gwaine made to move but Percival pulled him back down to the ground. They knew Morgana's power was more than enough to take one of them down at a time, maybe all of them at once. They had to time this perfectly.

Arthur remained quiet after they had moved away. He took off his gloves and warmed his hands rubbing them together. Merlin approached him, "None of you seem surprised to see my unclehim here." Merlin didn't know what to say so shook his head. Arthur was barely looking at him and took his silence as a vow of agreement. "And Guinevere? Did you know she would be here?"

"No, sire."

"Don't lie to me, Merlin."

"I would never lie to you."

"What Gwenshe said, is it true? Was it Morgana?" Merlin nodded. The King was blank still. He walked off them, leaving Merlin and the knights together to think of what came next.

He found himself somewhere dry to sit a stone's throw from his men, turning his back on them. He played with gloves in his hands. For days he hadn't shed a tear. He'd felt like it but hadn't wanted to give the traitor the satisfaction. But now? With the questions in the forefront of his mind he didn't know what to believe. And his Uncle, so long he had questioned his loyalty yet he hadn't wanted it to be true so ignored it in favour of finding another answer. But then here he was being made a fool, again. The man who had told him to kill his own betrothed for her actions; the man who had tried to stop him from marrying her was in league with his biggest enemy, had a hand in tearing his heart from his chest and ripping it to shreds. If only he had acted on his suspicions sooner, chances were he would have found Morgana before now. He would have been married to the only woman he had ever loved.

In anger he threw his leather gloves to the floor ground. He wanted to trust them but he'd never been able to believe a word anyone said to him from now on. Everybody lied to him. He wouldn't have been surprised if Merlin was did too.

He rubbed his face and exhaled into his hands.

Regardless of his feelings, he couldn't let Morgana hurt another person. He couldn't let her get the better of him again. Hurt though he may be, he still loved Guinevere, there was nothing in him that could allow his i_sister_/i harm her. He hadn't been able to do it himself. He'd rather send her away and carry on living knowing she was off elsewhere moving on thatn kill her.

He still loved her. That in itself was not a revelation. The fact that dawned on him following that thought was; he wanted her back.

He stood quickly and marched back to camp. With his sword in his belt he went straight past the other knights, without thought and straight down towards Morgana's hovel. The moment they realised what he was doing, each of the knights were grabbing their swords and running after him.

If they weren't so close to the door, Merlin would have questioned what he was doing. It wasn't sane to just go storming into the hideout of the enemy who had power enough to kill you with one thought.

The look of steely determination on the King's face was enough to tell anybody not to question him. There may not be an exact plan in place, but something along the lines of winning wouldn't go a miss.

Opening the door was easy, it wasn't bolted in any way, the group of them walked in weapons held high.

They were greeted with a sight that they had anticipated. Gwen's feet werewas tied with rope, he hands clasped with and chainsed to one of the chairs whilst Morgana and Agravaine stood by her. When the surprise came of the half dozen men, Morgana turned on her heel and smirked before raising her hand. In one fellow swoop she swent Elyan flying backwards. Agravaine was shocked. Arthur was on him in a shot, his fist connecting cleanly with his jaw and sprawling him backward. Morgana grabbed her own weapon but proceeded to bring her possessions down on them from the shelves. The knights were blocking attacks from all angles before Gwaine managed to get forward enough to send a blow of his own at her.

Merlin moved back, shielding himself with the shelves. Using his own powers he sent Morgana flying back against the wall, it wasn't a long enough flight to knock her out but it knocked her for six and disoriented her long enough for the knights to be on her, pining her and tying her with anything they could find.

The sorcerer could have sworn her heard a laugh shortly before he saw her eyes glow and the knights around her all flinched back like they'd been burned. She stood, the ties dropping from her. One flick of her hand and her eyes shone amber again and they all started heaving like they were choking on something when all there was , was air.

Merlin quickly countered it,it; they were all on the floor heaving for breath.

Confused, Morgana set about causing them further pain, only to be halted by an unseen force.

Arthur stood opposite his uncle. He had a dangerous look in his eye.

Gwen sat there and looked up at him nervously but he didn't look at her.

"I knew it was you. I knew you were a traitor." He raised his sword and moved to swing it at his opponent. The man swiped a block but Arthur followed it blow by blow. He wasn't stopping, wasn't yielding to his uncle's pleads. "You don't have the right to ask for my forgiveness. I thought you were helping me."

"I was helping you."

"By turning your back on me? By plotting against me with her? Have you ever told me the truth?" Agravaine opened his mouth to answer but Arthur didn't allow him to answer, "Was the fact that my father had died not enough that you had to try and bring me down and ruin every aspect of my life whilst you were at it? Not enough to take the throne, but ruin my marriage too.?"

"Technically, you weren't married."

"You never approved."

"Your people would think you a joke, Arthur."

"Less of a joke to stand up for what you believe in than to marry the woman you love, no matter who they are." Out of the corner of his eye he saw Gwen turned away from his a small smile on her face. "You made a fool of me, Uncle. Time and time again. Not anymore. Nobody deserves that. It doesn't even make sense. To try and destroy the last thing that remains of your sister to help the bastard child of the man you hated. It would make sense to help me. But not her."

"What are you going to do? Kill me?"

"I should. Isn't that what my father would have done? Executed traitors?"

Behind them, Morgana had turned her attentions on the serving boy who had, thus far, stayed out of her way. "You think you can hide, Merlin." She drawled, "Pathetic. You couldn't even kill the King properly."

"Neither could you."

"I think you'll find I succeeded in killing one of you."

"

X

"You're weak, Arthur. You allow people to walk all over you. Allow them to make a fool of you. You are blinded by your love and faith in people to see what really lies behind their eyes. I am not the only one who betrayed you in recent times. Guinev-"

"Leave her out of this. You know fully well the true circumstance of the situation."

"The emotions were already there."

"Buried. Buried in a distance memory of a man I knew years ago. Ever since he left years ago I have never thought of him in that way." Gwen argued, her back on Agravaine, but she could see Arthur looking down at her. "I've spent the last three years waiting for the day that I could finally call myself Arthur's Queenwife. One more day and you ruined that. You and MorganaBoth of you." She spared a look up to Arthur who was still looking at her. "I love you. Only you."

Arthur acknowledged her with a small smile but turned his attentions quickly on his traitorous Uncle, "Give me one good reason not to run you through where you stand?"

"I'm family." He said with hesitating, a hint of laughter laced in his voice.

"That didn't stop you killing my father."

"The performer killed your father."

"He was recovering. The pair of you, together."

"It was the sorcerer. It was he who conjured the spells that killed him on your word. Your actions killed your father."

"He was already dying. You plot against your king. Both of them, for that you will pay the price."

"Arthur, no." the voice in his ear was Guinevere.

"This man is a traitor to Camelot."

"Then take him back to Camelot, show him for what he is worth. If he dies at your hand you will forever feel guilty and question yourself. You must take the evidence, Arthur, we know where it all points. We know what he has done. He tells you to make an example to the people. Let him be made an example of." She held his gaze. There was a day when she would have looked away from him, stepped back over her words, apologised for speaking out of turn. But this was who he wanted her to be, to advise him, to give him assurance that what he was doing was right and to tell him when she thought him wrong. "Do not think of what he had done to you. Think of what it meant for the kingdom. They deserve to know the truth."

"He will not come willingly."

"He does not need to. What is a man against four of Camelot finest knights, the King and a useless servant?"

A bitter laugh came from behind him. "You keep your back turned for too long, Arthur." He turned to face her. In her arms she had Merlin, a knife to his throat. On the floor were his three remaining knights since Morgana had taken Elyan out on first blow. Each of them were unconscious from lack of oxygen coming into their lungs. "I think you'll find it's I who is am calling the shots."

"Let him go, Morgana."

"Or what, brother?"

"Arthur!" Gwen's cry alerted him to the oncoming attack from his uncle. He dodged it and knocked the man to the floor with ease. He took his sword to the chains about Gwen's wrists and they fell loose, allowing her to get her hands free. She untied the knots quickly at her feet and scrambled forwards, taking Agravaine's sword from him and keeping it pointed to his neck. "Don't try anything." She warned.

Morgana laughed once more.

"The pitiful thing is you still think you can beat me." She pressed the blade more firmly to Merlin's throat,throat; he was scared to swallow should he cut himself. "How about a deal, Arthur. I let Merlin here go free and you stay."

"Merlin and Guinevere and you've got yourself a deal."

"Even after what she did to you, are you are willing to let her live. I'm impressed, before you would have made her suffer as you did. You're growing up."

"You're the one that's going to pay Morgana. Not her."

She let Merlin go, "Go." She ordered him but he stood, reluctant to leave Arthur alone with her. "Leave now, Merlin, or I will kill you both and make him watch whilst I do."

"Merlin go, take Guinevere with you."

"Arthur-"

"GO. That's an order." He could feel Gwen's eyes on him but he couldn't look at her still, "Both of you."

"I won't leave you her with her," she told him determinedly.

"Go with Merlin, take the knights and get out here." He pushed her towards Merlin, not giving her any more choice. Morgana, true to her word, released her hold on the knights and allowed them, aided by Gwen and Merlin to be escorted from the hut. Once his back was safely on Arthur, Merlin allowed himself to think of the only thing he could to help him.

"And then there were two."

"Ignoring our dear uncle on the floor." Arthur said casting the man a disdainful look.

Morgana laughed, "He has failed me quite enough for one life time." She said, her eyes turning amber before Arthur could stop her, the man now limp on the floor. The life was quickly leaving his eyes.

"You didn't have to do that."

"He died traitor and a failure, it would have been crullercrueller for him to live. I, of course, should I fail today, will have to find another person to be my eyes and ears within the castle. Maybe Merlin; or maybe Gwen, for she has already betrayed you the once, it wouldn't be hard to sway her again."

"You'll do best to stay away from my people. Come near them again and I will kill you."

"No, Arthur, you won't. We both know you're too noble to kill your own blood. You don't care for me but you do care for honour. The knight's code, personal glory. Yet you allow yourself to made a fool by a girl. A maid at that." She taunted, stepping over the dead body of their uncle, "Was she worth it, Arthur? Was she worth the hurt?"

"Guinevere will always be worth more than you. There is nothing but evil in your heart, where once it was good, only filled with good intentions but now your heart is black as the night."

"Rather poetic of you, Arthur. Some might think the girl has made you weak. I can see it in your eyes; you still carry a torch for her, you've forgiven her for what she did."

"What you did. Guinevere would never betray me that way."

"But she did. All I did was a little coaxing. The feelings were there, she was just doing a very good job at ignoring them. Rather sweet, and problematic for me, but I overcame it. It goes to show even the nicest and most decent of humans can be turned into liars."

"Says Morgana, the true example of her own words. What happened to you? You used to fight for the rights of others, for their lives. So many times did I help you in defying my father to save another. Yet here you are, murderer of people. Ruiner of lives."

"So melodramatic, brother, or had you forgotten? You like to ignore the fact that you father was the worst liar of them all. For so long he told you lie after lie, your whole childhood shrouded in them, mine also. My father died in battle, so I was led to believe. And you wonder why I wanted revenge on our father. Killing him was the best thing I ever did."

That was enough to make Arthur swing for at her. She raised her hand, expecting to send her brother flying backwards, but the spell backfired, sending her backwards through the air into her own shelving unit. She fell to the floor, out cold.

Arthur took the opportunity to run.

X

He wasn't surprised to find the group of his men still loitering waiting for him to return. It wasn't often that any of them would actually follow any of his orders in these situations. Without even thinking, once he rejoined the group he embraced Guinevere, who was more than thank ful to see him, running her fingesfingers through the hair at the nape of his neck.

Even on remembering himself he didn't let her go too soon or too harshly. HeE was happy to be alive, and he was sure she was too.

"We should return to Camelot."

"What about Agravaine?" Merlin asked him as they began to untie their horses in favour of riding for home.

"Dead. She killed him. He was no longer of use to her, so she killed him."

Merlin couldn't help but think of how she had done the same thing to the shade of Lancelot. Once she had achieved as she had set out to and his use was done, she had him kill hims self before the truth could come out. It was a near fool-proof plan, but Merlin was no fool (most of the time).

"I'm sorry, Arthur. I know you trusted him."

"And I was wrong too. I should have believed you from the start. Now we should get out of here before Morgana comes round. Whatever spell she was going to try on me backfired, and it might not last for long."

Merlin sighed, happy that the spell he had cast on her had worked in their favour. Whatever she had cast on Arthur would be done to her instead, if she had attempted to kill him, she would be dead.

X

A quiet knock came to his chamber door. Arthur stood in his window looking down over the people in the courtyard. They gathered in wait for his verdict. Since his return with Guinevere in tow there had been mass speculation as to where their relationship would be going. Would he accept her back into his life, or would she merely be back in Camelot a maid in the royal household. "Come." He spoke out, knowing it would be the one who invaded all his thoughts. Everything led back to her.

"You wanted to see me, sire."

"Yes, Guinevere." He gestured for her to come inside and she shut the door behind her. They stood in an awkward silence for a long while. He didn't know how to start and she didn't feel like she had the right to. "I wanted to know what you were doing at Morgana's hut, how you found it?"

"When I with Mary and John I met this woman. She told me what Morgana had done and gave me a crystal, told me to follow it. She told me that without me you would die and that you needed my help in your battle against her. As it turned out you saved me from her, you saved my life again and for that I am eternally grateful. You could have left me to die. It's what I deserved."

He shook his head. "You do not deserve to die, Guinevere. My uncle may have told me as such but as it is, it was also down to him that you were presented to me in this way." Arthur paused in his speech to take in the image of her before him. She was back in one of her usual dresses. One she had made with cloth gifted to her by Arthur himself. Intricate flowers embroidered into the hems, a brown belt attached about her hips. Every part of her was a reminder of what they had had. "You must understand Guinevere, that just because I have allowed you to return to Camelot that it means that we can go back to where we were." She went to reply to him but he held up his hand to silence her, she obliged, "What you did, even though endured through magic, it was the ounce of truth in it that made it hurt so much. I know once you carried a torch for him, no matter how long ago. I can forgive you,you; I did long before I knew of the true means of the situation, but I don't ever know if I'll ever be able trust you again."

"I understand." She bowed her head and made to leave.

"No, Guinevere, you don't." She was confused, her brow knitted, "Despite all that, the time I spent without you- I missed you. No matter how else I feel I will always love you. We may not be able to go to where we were, but my suggestion is this: we try." She was speechless, "The people may think me crazy, but there has never been another for me, Guinevere. Your actions were not your own and that will be explained, but I cannot go back to that. In time, maybe. Fictional though it may have been, there is a part of me now that will always suspect the worst. Not just in you, in everybody. But the last few days, I have not been myself. It has felt as though a part of me is missing and that part of me is you. I cannot be without you, Guinevere. Part of me wishes it wasn't so, but the rest of me, the part that never hated you, it knows that you make me a better man. I was lost without you."

She stood in silence once he had finished, tear tracks down her cheeks. She wiped them away. ~He had seen her cry enough times in the last days to know that she was sorry. Yet she did not feel that she had a right to cry, herself it may not have been, but the image of her had been what had caused his pain and for that she could scarcely forgive herself.

She tried her hardest to formulate words, after a few false starts she managed to string words together, "I am sorry, Arthur. With every ounce of my being, my heart, my soul, I give everything to you. Everything felt so real when it was happening, but part of me knew something was wrong. The back of my mind screaming at me, telling me that it wasn't me, but I couldn't control myself. Knowing those feelings were once there, it made it all the harder to ignore them. I do not trust myself. But I never wanted to ever hurt you. You're the one I love Arthur. You. I loved him once, long ago, but never whilst I ever thought I had a future with you. I understand that things may never go back to how they were, but as long as I have you in my life, I'll be happy with that." She managed a small smile but felt like crying on the inside. She much she had wanted for him to take her in his arms and kiss her on the forehead, to tell her to was all okay. They could work through it but she knew that was so unlikely, "I should get back to work."

She moved off towards the door and paused for a moment before pulling it open. She did not wish to cry again. Composing herself she pushed down on the door handle but the sound of his voice stopped her in her tracks.

"Guinevere?" She couldn't turn back to look at him but did not move, "I want to be angry with you. I want to make you hurt as much as I did. I did want to. Maybe I should still, but I don't. They say love conquers all. And no matter what else I'm feeling, it's my love for you that wins over them."

"What are you saying, Arthur?" she asked him, her voice cracking over her words. She was confused and hopeful and so full of questions.

"Everybody deserves a second chance. Especially when it wasn't their fault. I love you, Guinevere," he reached towards her hand, running his thumb over the back of it, "And I can't live without you."

He gently pushed a stray curl behind her ear. She couldn't say a word,word; they stuck in her throat with her breath. All anger he had had behind his eyes was gone with only affection in its place. A look she had feared she would never get again.

"Take it slowly, let me prove myself to you." She said, enclosing her fingers tightly around his.

"We've taken it slowly for three years, Guinevere, I can't go back to that. I rather liked being able to walk about the castle with arm in mine, being able to kiss you without worrying about who would see us."

"But the people, what would they think?"

"I don't care. I'll explain everything to them. They can know that I'm forgiving you for what you didn't do. They can accept that their King has made a choice and they will stick by me. The people love you, Guinevere, more so than they do me, I'm sure." They both shared a light laugh, "If I can forgive, they can." She still looked unsure. HeE could understand her questions, they had all passed through his own mind, but damn them, "We can prolong our engagement. We can show them all what you're made of and how happy you make me. Besides, somebody needs to judge all these county shows,; I cannot face another pumpkin competition or whatever drivel Merlin signs me up for."

"That would be punishment enough," she said through tears that had fallen.

"You needn't cry, Guinevere."

"These are happy tears, I assure you, Arthur." He smiled at her and pulled her into him, wrapping his arms around her. He pressed a firm kiss to her forehead. She smiled into his chest, knowing she was back where she belonged.

With a questioning frown, Arthur pulled on the cord that was still around her neck, pendant under her dress. When he caught a glimpse of the simple band, he took the cord from around her neck and broke it. He dropped the ring into his larger hand and took her left, slipping it back onto her finger. She was busy looking down at her finger, running her thumb over the metal, warmed from its continual contact with her skin. He gently tucked his finger under her chin to make her look at him. He kissed her firmly on the lips.

Her arms looped around his neck, treasuring every point of contact, and making herself as flush as she could to his being, never wanting to let him go. Bringing his arms around her back, he settled her against him.

The door opened, Merlin entered without knocking and nearly walking straight into the pair of them. He caught the look on Arthur face and smiled broadly before quickly disappearing out of the room again. He kept smiling as he walked down the corridor.

"What's made you so happy?" Leon asked him as he saw the servant. "Arthur run out of jobs for you to do?"

"If you're after Arthur, I would leave him for a moment." He grinned and carried on towards the kitchens.

Leon laughed at him but continued on to Arthur's chambers. Unlike his warning bearer, he knocked first and awaited a reply before he entered.

"Come." Arthur said after a short while, a cough straight after.

Leon entered, to begin with her did not notice his childhood friend sitting at the table but once he registered the King's unkempt appearance he sought her out. With the truth of the situation uncovered he hadn't expected it to be long for the pair of them to be reunited, even with the underlying emotions that were bound to remain for some time.

"I can come back later, my lord, if you're busy right now." He looked to Gwen who looked away from him.

"I should be going," she announced, slowly standing. Arthur approached her and kissed her quickly with a smile on his face, "I will see you in the morning." He nodded and pecked her on the lips before allowing her to leave.

As the door closed behind her, Leon turned to the King with a broad smile, "I am glad you have sorted it out, my lord. Nobody makes you happy like she does."

"Nobody loves me like she does." He admitted, quickly moving away from the subject, "What was it you wanted?"

X

Gwen walked from the castle with her purple cloak around her shoulders. She did not miss the cold looks some of the staff gave her. Others greeted her with warm smiles and told her they were happy to see her back in the palace walls.

"My lady," she heard from a familiar source as she started down the steps into the courtyard. He bounded after her, blue shirt and red scarf.

"Not yet, Merlin." She smiled at him in return,return; something told her that he had played a large hand in her acceptance back into Arthur's life. He would never brag to the point of telling her as much but deep in her heart she had known it as fact. He kept his word and he had promised that he would help her to return to Camelot. She hadn't expected it to have been as quickly as it was, nor had she expected ever to be wearing the ring on her finger ever again.

"But soon," he teased, tapping her hand pointing to the ring that graced it. She laughed slightly, happy to have her friend back with her again. "Everything is right in Camelot. You and Arthur are back making eyes at each other."

"You will be back cleaning up after him." She teased though she wondered how much longer Arthur could go on without accepting to the fact that Merlin was far much more than his servant and friend. He was, and always would be, Arthur's first port of call for advice much as Gaius had been for Uther. Though he may not have been all that vocal about it, Arthur trusted him and knew that Merlin was destined to be more than just a servant who spent all his days cleaning.

"Gwaine has been stealing from the kitchens." Merlin told her, like a child who was telling his parents on his sibling. Their close friendship made Gwen smile. Since Lancelot had first left it was as if Merlin had lost somebody, there was a void in his life that was graciously filled by the drunkard knight. There was always a wider smile on Merlin's face when he had been spending time with Gwaine. Merlin continued on his recounting, "Percival and Elyan have been making bets on how long it'll be until Beth hangs him, Percival seems to think another fivie minutes whereas your brotheryour brother had gone for a more laid back approach of another day."

"Beth loves the attention they bring her," Gwen reasoned, "I bet two." They laughed together as Merlin accompanied her to her home. He hugged her as they reached her door and wished her well rested. "All back to normal in Camelot, then."

"Yes it is," Merlin grinned.

When she shut her door he did not head back to the castle. In apprehension, he left the city and went in search of what had happened to the sorceress.

**There's one more short part to follow this up, then two short sequels to then lead into a story that I have yet to write that I have no idea how long it will be =]**

**Again I ask that you don't mention spoilers to me, else I'll be a hunting you =]**


	3. Chapter 3

**I decided to put one of the sequels at the beginning of this part. So you get a bit of a hint of where the second longer story is going. I hope you like it. First sequel will be posted soon.**

The night after they had all return from Morgana's hideout, Merlin had returned under the cover of darkness to see what she had inflicted on herself. A large part of him hoped to find her body gone, by all pretences alive. She deserved to go in a bigger way than that, but a small part of him was hoping he found her still there.

He hadn't expected her to be in an in-between state.

When he found, where he assumed Arthur had left her, he had checked to see if she was still breathing and she was. What made him stay, putting her into her small bed and waiting until she woke, he had no idea.

"Merlin?" she had asked through squinted eyes when she woke an hour later. "What are you doing?" she asked him as she looked around, "Where are we? What am I doing here?"

He proceeded to tell her that this hovel, was where she lived. HEe told her of the things she'd done and who she had hurt. Throughout she had shaken her head and called him a liar. She would never hurt her friends. She did not have magic, he was a fool for saying so.

She shouted at him to leave.

"I can help you," he told her, "But I cannot take you back to Camelot."

Part of him wanted to leave her there to die, to get what she deserved, but that part of him that made him Merlin stopped him from acting in such a poor manner. Looking back at him was the real Morgana, the one he had first met in Camelot, the one he had bought flowers to feel better. The one who had helped a druid boy escape from Camelot. This was Morgana before hatred had consumed her.

To be sure, he gathered some of the potions that were lying around her hut and mixed then. He spread the mixture into her hands and held them out, "If the mixture turns red, you're lying. It stays black, you're telling the truth."

He asked her a series of questions, starting with the ordinary and ranging to the obscure. He tested the mixture by asking her to lie. She told him he was useless and the mixture on her hands soon turned red. He asked her if she had any memory of taking Gaius and squeezing him for information about Emrys, and when she told him that she never heard the name Emrys in her life, the mixture stayed black.

He explained to her that he would not be able to return her to Camelot. She would have to start a new life away from there, but he would help her. He told her that she would start to notice things, magical abilities that might scare her, but he promised to help her.

When he left her to sleep later that night, she thanked him.

For the first time since Morgause had entered their lives, Merlin truly felt that he had his old friend back.

x

The lower town was decorated with streams of colour which continued up into the courtyard of the castle. Within the great hall large arrangements of flowers adorned the central aisle. The servants of Camelot had been working through the night to make the hall just right for the royal occasion.

In his chambers, the King stood at odds with his servant, "What to you mean I can't wear this? I always wear this."

"Exactly."

"You've never had a problem with it before."

"Merlin; today is not any other day. Now here, please just take the blasted scarf off and wear this."

"The last time you said what I had to wear I ended up looking like a pillock."

"Please, it's not that bad," he produced the leather suede jacket from his closet and presented it to Merlin, "I think you'll find it's a vast improvement." It was a blue jacket with a short collar, much unlike the hideous ceremonial robes her had made Merlin wear before.

"I shall wear it. On fear that Gwen might hang me with my own scarf should I not."

X

Across the castle in a musky chamber that had served many of Camelot's guests in the past stood Guinevere with many a handmaiden faffing around her. She wore a delicately made dress with a thin lilac over layer with layers of white beneath it with gold detailing beneath her bust and on her shoulders. There was a knock on the door, one of the ladies answered it and permitted the newcomer to enter.

ITt was her brother.

As one lady secured her hair with golden pins, he came over to her, casting his eye down over the frock, "Whoever would have thought that you would scrub up so well."

"Careful sir, this is your future Queen you are speaking to," she said in jest, "Is it time?"

"Nearly." He produced a golden bracelet from beneath his cloak and offered it out to her, "I found this within Dad's belongings when I first returned. I set it to one side. It was Mum's, Dad's wedding gift to her. I thought I would save it for you for your wedding day. I didn't think it would actually be the least valuable piece you would have then."

"Elyan, thank you. I shall treasure it forever. And it is not the least valuable. In price maybe, but not in sentiment." She placed a grateful kiss to his cheek and allowed him to put it on her, "It matches in perfectly."

"Are you ready?"

"I am now," she smiled nervously, "I cannot believe this day has finally come."

"You will be Guinevere, Queen of Camelot."

"Sister of Elyan, knight of Camelot."

The two siblings made their way the short journey towards the hall. She was nervous but her butterflies had nothing on those fighting their battle within the King's. He stood with his friends at the top of the Great Hall. Geoffrey of Monmouth stood metres from him, ready to begin. The Lords and Ladies of Camelot had all gathered, the servants, Gwen's friends from her past life, were permitted to attend and mostly stood down the sides of the hall in their finest clothes.

Upon the signal, Arthur moved away from the knights to stand by Geoffrey. The doors that seemed so far away, opened, presenting him with his Queen. He smiled broadly, nothing else in the world mattered in that moment. They were Arthur and Guinevere. She was going to be his Queen. The time it took for her to walk one end to the other dragged. A walk that normally took seconds was taking minutes in his mind.

Once finally at her side, her brother presented her to his King and took his place next to the other knights who were standing with Merlin who proudly stood tall in his new fine jacket, though he vowed to only wear it for important occasions.

With her hand in his, they remained facing each other, neither looking to anyone else in the congregation like Arthur had at his last disaster of a wedding. In another universe he would be unhappily wed to Elena, the pair of them miserable. The blonde lady stood in the front row opposite the knights, smiling at them now, so glad not to have married him, free to find her own real happiness.

Geoffrey silenced the chatter with the rise of his hand. He began his address as he had hundreds of times in the past within Camelot's walls. "My lords, ladies, and gentlemen of Camelot, we are gathered here today to celebrate the ancient rite of hand-fasting, the union of Arthur Pendragon and Guinevere of Camelot." There was an appreciative whistle that came from none other than Gwaine, of that theythat they were sure. The couple smiled, "Is it your wish, Arthur, to become one with this woman?"

He answered with no trace of hesitancy, "It is." 

Geoffrey turned his gaze to Guinevere, "Is it your wish, Guinevere, to become one with this man?"

Guinevere smiled broadly, "It is."

"Do any say nay?" There was an unnerving silence across the hall. One man coughed but nobody spoke up, much to both of their delights, "Then as we gather here today, we are all witness to this rite. With this garland, I do tie a knot, and by doing so, bind your hands and your hearts for all eternity. I pronounce you husband and wife."

The knights were the first to cheer, even before they had leaned in to kiss each other. Softly at first, Arthur pulling away from her and smiling, "You look beautiful," he said to her softly. She smiled up at him and he shortly kissed her once again.

"I hereby present you with Arthur and Guinevere Pendragon."

That night there was a feast in their honour. Alcohol flowed, food was eaten, the servants and nobles alike enjoyed themselves. The party extended into the streets of the lower town of Camelot. After the ceremony the newly married couple ascended to the battlements of the city to look over it, people watching them from below, waving, cheering. They returned every wave, smiled to their people to each other, and once briefly alone on their way back down the stairs, they shared a tender kiss. All of their pasts behind them, readily looking forwards to their future and all that it would hold for them and Albion.


End file.
